Fake interoffice email delivers malware

In this week’s Spam Saturday we showcase a spam that we've seen before. Now it’s back and in much larger numbers, signifying that the first malicious campaign was successful on some level.

Human nature is such that people are often more worried about what they might lose as compared to what they could gain. This email does a good job stating that the recipient may lose some of their money if they don’t act. In spite of a few minor grammatical errors, it comes across as official and has a clear call to action.

The attachment appears to contain a legitimate form from the California state government, but instead houses a Trojan application. Once it is launched by the unsuspecting user, it can download more malware. This in turn can leave a computer and network completely vulnerable to data loss or make them tools for hackers to use in their next illegal activity.

As with all email, pay attention to the details. This spam mentions “state business”, but nothing regarding a specific organization. When in doubt about interoffice messages, it is always safest contact someone from your organization for more information before acting.

Christine Barry is Senior Chief Blogger and Social Media Manager at Barracuda. In this role, she helps bring Barracuda stories to life and facilitate communication between the public and Barracuda internal teams. Prior to joining Barracuda, Christine was a field engineer and project manager for K12 and SMB clients for over 15 years. She holds several technology credentials, a Bachelor of Arts, and a Master of Business Administration. She is a graduate of the University of Michigan.

Search this site

Search this website

About Christine Barry

Christine Barry is Senior Chief Blogger and Social Media Manager at Barracuda. In this role, she helps bring Barracuda stories to life and facilitate communication between the public and Barracuda internal teams. Prior to joining Barracuda, Christine was a field engineer and project manager for K12 and SMB clients for over 15 years. She holds several technology credentials, a Bachelor of Arts, and a Master of Business Administration. She is a graduate of the University of Michigan.